The Case of the Black Group
by C. H. Baker
Summary: Lestrade brings Holmes and Watson a case of robbery and murder, and Watson thinks the Black Group, a crime organization that disappeared years ago, is responsible. Holmes then gets in an investigation that will endanger his life.
1. Inspector Lestrade brings the case

**The Case of the Black Group**

**Chapter 1: Inspector Lestrade brings the case**

The many adventures that me and my friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, encountered for several years will always be printed in my head. One particular case that I can remember was the one of the Case of the Black Group. This particular case had me eager to discover the nature of such acts that had occured. If I recall well, this case was as early as 1882. That year, Inspector Lestrade had visited us various different times, and Holmes had assisted to many cases. It was a 20th of March when this case came to hand. Lestrade had arrived in the early afternoon, having the mood of a worried man. Mrs. Hudson had led him in and Holmes and I had received him. Holmes was always paying attention to the words of the inspector, and this time was no different. I was seldom paying attention, but this time I was.

"Ah, Lestrade!" had said Holmes when he saw Lestrade sitting in the living room. "Tell me, my good inspecotr, what brings you today here?"

"A case of pure evil." said Lestrade with a scared tone.

"Tell me, inspector, what this evil may be."

"It all started as a simple bank robbery. I thought it was nothing serious, well, not as serious as it actually is. The robbery had been done at night. Nobody knows how the thief mannaged to do it, but there was no forced entrance nor any sign of having a different way in. The next morning the vault was found open and several thousands were missing. As I remember they were 50.000 pounds. This occured three weeks ago. A week later a new bank was robbed, the same conditions. We then set our heads in catching this thief."

"How much money was stolen the second time?" interrupted my friend.

"20.000 pounds."

"Ah, this time they went for less. But it would have been too much to have stolen the same quantity, but still I think this criminal is an ambitious one. Please continue."

"Well, with the 70 thousands stolen and no idea of how the criminal had done it we set an investigation which didn't give us many results. I first thought it was only robbery, but then it escalated to murder. Last week a man was found dead with a knife wound on the back of his head. This man was found floating in a river, completely clotheless. But there was a curiosity in this man. On his chest there was a circle with the letter B painted with the victim's blood."

"The Black Group symbol." I said.

"Excuse me?" said Lestrade.

"The Black Group symbol. I read about it once. It's a group of people dedicated into illegal activities, most notably murder. Whenever they commit a crime they leave their mark. No one from the group has ever been identified. Inspector, in the banks was the same mark? Maybe painted in the wall, or on the floor?"

"I'm sorry, but not that we have known of."

"Ha!" laughed Holmes, "Excuse my rudeness, but there might in fact be one and your people have missed it, Lestrade."

"There's the possibility." Lestrade said, insulted.

"Inspector, have you ever heard before about the group?" I asked.

"I think I once heard somebody mention it, but I didn't pay much atenttion to it."

"It would be curious that a police officer wouldn't have heard about it, but the group stopped its activities about ten or so years ago. That's why I think you haven't heard of them. But its strange that they would want to restart their activities after so much time."

"That," said Lestrade, "taking in consideration that is really the Black Group. Maybe somebody is just trying to get everybody scared and to make us think they're back. And besides, maybe the bank robbery and the murder aren't connected at all."

"Inspector," said Holmes, "I believe that they are. Thanks to what my colleague has said, I think it _is _this group. Now, Lestrade, I'll help you catch these people. But to do so, I would like to visit the bank and inspect myself to see if there's any type of symbol there."


	2. The Bank

**The Case of the Black Group**

**Chapter 2: The Bank**

We got into a cab a few minutes later and departed to the bank which Lestrade had described as the one that had been stolen from. Lestrade seemed to be nervous. As far as I knew there hadn't been any good results in the case, the reason why the Scotland Yard had called my friend. They needed his assistance, and this pleased Holmes. Holmes quiet enjoyed the fact that the Scotland Yard wouldn't be able to deal with the case by themselves and they needed his help. Holmes enjoyed that the police officers would be in need of his help.

"Lestrade, I trust that you have given us all the information you know," said Holmes, his eyes closed, "but is there any detail that you may have ommitted? Anything. Anything may be of help."

"I believe I have told you everything, Holmes."

"Are you sure? Everything? Little details, all?"

"Yes. 50.000 the first bank, 20.000 the second one. The victim of the murder was James Lordwell, died of the stab he received on the back of his head. On his chest a big "B" in a circle was painted in blood, what Doctor Watson tells me is the symbol of the Black Group, organization which I didn't know. I'll investigate further into them to see what we are dealing with, if we_ are _actually dealing with them."

"Good. Now, Lestrade, who is at the bank right now?"

"Of the force? Gregson is there."

Holmes gave a low chuckle. It amused him the passive rivalry between Lestrade and Gregson. It would be interesting to see them in a discussion in such acase, or that was Holmes thought.

"Will we be arriving soon?" asked Holmes to the caby.

"Soon we will, sir." answered the caby.

"Good."

We were at the bank in ten minutes. The place was closed, surrounded by police officers. According to other details that Lestrade had told us the banks had been closed for the investigation. In between the officers I saw Tobias Gregson. We walked towards him at the same time he did towards us. He met us then.

"Its good you have come, Holmes. We hope you'll be of good help." said inspector Gregson as he met us.

"Is this the first bank?" was Holmes's cold answer.

"Yes." answered Gregson and Lestrade at the same time.

"Very well. Now, gentlemen, lets go inside."

We entered the bank. Inside were a couple of police officers from the Scotland Yard. They didn't seem to have done much. Lestrade had told us the vault had been left open, it still was. I guessed they had left it that way to investigate. It had been three weeks and the vault was still open. What else could they get if they hadn't gotten it? Holmes would answer this. We entered the vault, it was empty. It seemed that the police hadn't entered the place again after the first day of investigation: everything remained as it would have in a normal day on a bank.

"You say they took 50 thousnad?" said Holmes.

"Yes." answered Lestrade.

"And you say nothing else was found in here? No symbol?"

"No, Mr. Holmes, no symbol."

I could hear Gregson question Lestrade with questions like "Symbol? What symbol?".

"Humph."

Holmes did his observations around the place, staring at the empty safes and at the open door, feeling the floor and walls, smelling some of the objects in the place. I saw him then trying to move one big crate while saying "No symbol, Lestrade?". He pushed the crate aside and, painted in red (possibly blood) on the wall, a "B" surrounded by a circle.

"The Black Group." said Holmes.

"Why in the world would the one who did this put the symbol hidden?" said Gregson.

"Is it painted in blood?" I asked.

Holmes touched with the tip of his fingers the painting and retrieved it in a few seconds. He rubbed his index finger against his thumb.

"I think so." he said.

"Whose blood?" said Lestrade.

"I would dare to say that it was his own," answered Holmes, "but why he did it, I don't know."

"Its their signature." I said. "The Black Group's signature was the B in a circle in blood. It can't be their symbol if it isn't in blood."

"Who are these Black Group you are talking about?" cried Gregson.

"A criminal organization." answered Holmes. "We believe they are behind this."

"They're responsible for this? And for the murder too? God!"

"Yes, and I believe in the other bank their symbol is drawn on the wall too. If you may take me there I..."

"Yeah sure." said Lestrade.

We reached the second bank where Holmes did his observations and, behind another crate which we four moved, the Black Group's signature was painted in the wall.

"I'll have to investigate further." said Holmes. "Can you take me to the dead man?"


	3. James Lordwell, corpse with the symbol

**The Case of the Black Group**

**Chapter 3: James Lordwell, the Corpse with the Symbol**

After leaving the bank Lestrade and Gregson assured us that the would take us the next day to the headquarters to see the dead body. Holmes would study the corpse and then would see what he can get, as he usually does in cases of murder. The cases of murder which Holmes happens to get quiet interested. But this time Holmes wasn't the only one interested, I was getting interested myself. For the time I studied medicine I had read in several books the history of the Black group and this organization had always interested me, and I was now on a case of this organization that I had studied some years ago, an organization that had supossedly disappeared. Wether the Black Group was rising again or it was just a common criminal wanting the people in London to fear. I hadn't read anything on the papers about the Black Group, but I had read about the dead man and the bank robbery, the police hadn't said anything about the symbol. I thought that they, as they didn't know what that symbol meant, they wouldn't reveal it. And now that they knew it I didn't think they would reveal it either. In the case that this was the Black Group really they may have not wanted the people to be possesed by chaos, and if it was just someone posing as them then if the police revealed it they would be giving this fake criminal exactly what he wanted. Whatever the case was, they wouldn't reveal it to the public.

We were back at 221B Baker Street and Mrs. Hudson had served dinner. We were eating, I was reading the paper, when Holmes said:

"Its an unusual affair this of the Black Group. Its strange that the Black Group would rise again ten years after their disapperance."

"Yes, but Holmes, don't you believe this is the Black Group?" I asked.

"I don't know. There's the possibility that the criminal group decided to start again their ilegal activities many years after they stopped them, or there's the possibility that some normal criminial is just trying to create fear by making the people believe that an extinct criminal organization has returned to its activities. But sincerly, I don't know which it may be."

"Holmes, was there anything unusual on the banks? Besides the symbol?"

"Not much."

Sometimes I was getting tired of the empty and cold answers I was getting from Holmes. I was getting interested in this case, but without many results it was hard to solve the case.

The next day Lestrade was back at 221B Baker Street. We got into a cab and headed to the police head quarters. There we met with Gregson who led us to the room where the dead man was. James Lordwell, the victim, was pale, had black hair and a moustache. Lordwell had a surprised face, which told me he had been surprised when he met his fate.

"What do you get from there, Holmes?" asked Gregson.

Holmes leaned in to the dead man. He observed the face of the victim, then turned him so he was able to see the back of his head. He inspected the wound. His last observation was at the symbol. After he had finished observing he withdrawed himself from the corpse.

"Nothing else that we already know." started my friend. "For his surprised face I get that he wasn't expecting to see the killer, or wasn't expecting to be murdered by the killer. Maybe, I dare to say, that maybe this man knew something about the Black Group."

"You're saying this man was familiarized with the group? In what way?" said Gregson. "Was he part of an investigation of the group? Or was he part of it? What is it Holmes?"

"There are many possibilities. I'll investigate further this man. Where did he work?"

"On a library." answered Lestrade.

"This may answer of how he knew about the group, if he really knew."

We were back in the cab. holmes was silently meditating. When he had observed the symbol, I noticed he had seen something. Holmes usually acted differently when he noticed something unusual.

"What did you see on the symbol?" I asked after I had failed on figuring out what had he seen.

"The blood wasn't the victim's."

"What? How do you know?"

"The blood on his chest was thicker than the one on the back of his head, which suggested it had been done before."

"But, if it was done before he was murdered, how was the symbol there?"

"What I'm thinking is this man was part of the Black Group, and was later killed by his people."

"Why would they kill one of their own?"

"Vengeance, betrayal. Many reasons. But I'm sure of one thing, this man is part of the group."


	4. Holmes shares his knowledge

**The Case of the Black Group**

**Chapter 4: Holmes Shares his Knowledge**

I was holding a glass of whisky on my hand. I had served it a couple of minutes after entering the appartment. Holmes was lighitng one of his cigars. While I took another drink of my whisky I reviewed Holmes's theory. What holmes had told me had passed through my mind before, but I wasn't sure about it. It was possible, but it still left an open question on my mind waiting for an answer:

"Holmes, their symbol means they have committed a crime. Their symbol on a person means he has been murdered. Why would someone, knowing this for he is part of the group, would permit them to put the symbol on him?"

"My dear fellow, I don't know how long has it been since you read about this group, maybe a long time it has passed for you may not remember this, but some of the individuals of the group, when they are ascended, are marked with the symbol on their bare chest by the blood of one of the important members of the group."

As Holmes spoke, the knowledge of what he was saying jumped back into my head. sure it had been a long time I had read about it, some time before Afghanistan, and I guess I had forgotten about it. But the question at the moment was how on earth had Holmes known this. I had been shocked when he first spoke about them as if he knew. Of course he knew, I wasn't surprised after a few seconds. After all, this was Sherlock Holmes. But where had he heard or read of it and why hadn't he told me, I did not know.

"Holmes, how do you know that?"

"Watson, you are not the only has read about them. I am quiet familiar with the group. I once had a case with the style of them. One of my clients had told me his brother had been murdered and that the symbol had appeared on the wall of his house, right above his dead body. I started investigating about it and discovered that that was the Black Group's symbol. I investigated further, and now I know fairly well about the organization. As of the case, its result was that it wasn't the Group, it was some fellow trying to throw the police away. But of course it had not been the group, when they murder someone they do not mark the wall of the victim, they mark the victim."

"Well, you know about them, but why didn't you tell me before? I had been these two days talking about the Group, with Lestrade and Gregson present, and you have not said a word about your knowledge of them."

"I did not say otherwise, and I was acting as if I knew about them, I thought you would find out. As you may remember, or you may not, the Black Group used to put their symbol behind something, it symbolyzed their hidding."

For the second time, Holmes's talking had reminded me of something I had read before of the Group. I was forgetting this details, and God knew how many more details I was forgetting.

"So what do you think?" I asked. "Do you think the Group has risen again?"

"The evident points that way. But let me correct you, Watson, I believe the Black Group never disappeared. I believe they have gone into hiding, maybe being more discret. You saw how the Scotland Yarders missed the Symbols on the banks. How many other crimes had had the symbol on the scene and the police did not notice? Ten years of bank robbing and other illegal activities and no one has ever noticed."

"So you are saying they are not back, they were always here?"

"Yes. What I think may be the situation here is that James Lordwell was an aspiring member of the Black Group. The bank robbery, and I am sure other activities that we may have passed, were part of his trial. When he had finally finished his tests he was to be named part of the group, but was later murdered by the members of the Group."

A very likely possibility. I have to say that I was getting pretty interested with this case. Is not that other Holmes cases were not interesting, but this particular one was more than the others. It was of a matter that had interested me some years ago, and Lestrade had come with a case that had brought the interest back on me. Holmes then started to make it even more interesting with his theories and the details that I had missed while I was remembering about the Group.

"Why do you think the other memebers killed him?"

"As I said, there are many possible reasons for this. But to answer your question, we will have to know more about this James Lordwell."

Before finishing his sentence Holmes was putting on his hat and jacket. He rose from his chair and walked towards the door.

"What are you waiting for? Ask for a cab and we will be on our way."


	5. James Lordwell's Story

**A/N: I've been off for a while after Christmas and New Year, but now I'm back to FanFic. As always, comments and reviews will be appreciated. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of you!**

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**The Case of the Black Group**

**Chapter 5: James Lordwell's Story**

Mr. James Lordwell's story was told to us by his family, the most part by his brother, Andrew.

We were heading to Mr. Lordwell's family house when I realized something, how did Holmes know where the house was? He had given an adress to the cabby, and we were heading out of the town, to what seemed a small farm in the outsides of London.

"Holmes," said I.

"Yes, Watson?"

"Holmes, how did you know where Mr. Lordwell's family house was located?"

"Welll, Watson, when we were at the police station, when Lestrade approached me and you were studying the corpse, Lestrade gave me the address."

I hadn't noticed Lestrade approaching Holmes, that proved how much different to Holmes.

The cab stopped at the farm we were heading. A woman was outside, brushing the hair of a black horse. Holmes walked to her.

"Hello," said he, "my name is Sherlock Holmes, this is my friend and colleague, Dr. Watson.""

"Hello, my name is Elaine." from the cab I couldn't see her, but being so close I could see she was a pretty blonde, wearing a white dress.

"We would like to talk to Mr. James Lordwell's family." said Holmes.

"Mr. Lordwell is not here." It was clear she did not know he was deceased.

"Yes, we are aware of that. We would like to speak with his family."

"Well, I think his mother and wife are here."

"Good, thank you."

Holmes and I walked to the house. Inside there was a woman, she seemed about James Lordwell's age, I suspected she was his wife. I saw Holmes observing her, observing every detail she had. Holmes would deduce her life observing her, as he always did.

"Hello." she said.

"Hello, Miss, may name is Sherlock Holmes, and this is my colleague Dr. John Watson."

"Ah, Mr. Holmes, I've heard about you. My name is Joane."

"We would like to ask you some questions."

"Well, take a seat."

Me and Holmes sat in front of her.

"We would like to speak about your husband."

Joane looked away from us. "My husband, James, he... have you find who did this to him?"

"No, but with your help we will be able to find him. Can you tell us about him?"

"What's to tell? He was a very private man, I did not really know his job life."

We talked with her for some time, but after some minutes we had nothing, or at least _I_ had nothing. While we were walking out of the house, Holmes told me:

"She knows something."

"Holmes, she..."

"She lied. While she was saying how she did not know about his life at his job she did not make eye contact, her eye brow twitched, she blinked too much." This little details that I was unable to see were the ones that Holmes had solved so many cases, and what had made him famous. Holmes then stopped walking and put a hand on my chest to stop me. "Do you hear that?"

"What?"

"Be quiet for a second."

After a few seconds I heard footsteps coming from behind. I turned around and saw a man, he looked like James Lordwell but younger.

"You want to know about my brother?" he said.

"We would like to." said Holmes.

"Have you heard about the Black Group?"

"We have heard something."

"I will tell you something almost nobody knows."

"Tell us."

"We, me and James, we are part of the group."

"I thought of that"

"We are relatively new, we haven't been inside for over five months. But my brother got his iniciation. He had to rob some banks, as you may know, he murdered a man, all part of the ritual. But the problem was that it was not a real iniciation, it was prepared to get revenge on him. You see, some weeks ago my brother told something about the group to the police, mostly because he had been scared of one of the memebers, so they wanted him to pay. On his final test, when the symbol of the Black Group was painted in the blood of his superiors on his chest, the member who he had told information to the police stabbed him in the back of his head. I cannot say anything, but I am afraid."

"Can you tell us who was that memeber?"

"I can't. I want him to be brought to justice, but I will be the next body if I tell you anything."

"Well, at least you have provided us with some help. Thank you."

Holmes and I returned to 221B Baker Street after we ordered a cab.

"This has turned to be a very interesting case, Watson," he told me, "and I think that the best way to solve it is knowing more about the Black Group."

"But, Holmes, how are you going to find out more? There is not any more information in books."

"Yes, but there is people who can tell us."


End file.
